DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The development of disease modifying agents in Parkinson's disease has rapidly expanded the need for in vivo markers
for diagnosis and monitoring disease progression. Dopamine transporter (DAT)
imaging offers the promise of an objective measure of dopaminergic degeneration
allowing for identification of changes in the brain that occur early in the
illness, prior to clinical diagnosis. The primary goal of this project is to
examine the sensitivity and specificity of DAT imaging using (3-CIT and SPECT
imaging as a diagnostic marker in subjects with suspected PD or PS.
Neurologists will identify subjects in whom they have genuine uncertainty
regarding diagnosis of PD or PS. The neurologists will be asked to document
their 'best guess' diagnosis on a Diagnostic Accuracy Questionnaire at the time
of referral. Subjects with suspected PD or PS will be evaluated clinically and
with DAT imaging at MNI. The blinded Parkinson's expert will re-examine the
subject in 6 months and make a final clinical diagnosis, which will serve as
the gold standard diagnosis for each subject. The DAT imaging diagnosis will
be compared to the 'gold standard' clinical diagnosis to determine the
sensitivity of (3-CIT and SPECT imaging as a diagnostic marker in PD and PS.
This project is a crucial step to begin to establish B-CIT and SPECT imaging as
an objective diagnostic biomarker prior to definitive diagnosis.